I'm fairly certain my boys have been goofing around with their fellow nose-picking buddies in the paddock during this time. The weather in Traverse City has been very nice for a change.
I heard there was going to be some dog sled racing in a nearby town last weekend. I thought that would be fun to photograph and the day was going to be nice. I had to check it out. I had no idea what to expect. I found out it's a great family sport! The first races were for kids who seemed to have big cheering sections...
and families that love their dogs
The dogs LOVE to run. Their excitement is palpable and they let out their high pitched barks in their anticipation of the run. These races ranged from 3 to 13 miles depending on the number of dogs and category. I learned that in the long race the mushers were allowed to have up to 20 dogs! Boy you better have faith in your lead dogs that they will listen to you. That's a lot of dogs to have working together. Here's what an 8 looks like:
And this is one of the larger teams with, I believe, 16 dogs:
The musher must be at least 3 or 4 horse lengths away from the lead dogs.
It was really fun to shoot the races.
Then I found myself in Kentucky for a visit. We found out that the brilliant and beautiful race horse, Einstein, was going to arrive at Adena Springs to begin his life at stud.
Einstein won 4 Grade 1 turf races, 1 Grade 1 on an All Weather surface and 1 Grade two on dirt. On the Adena Springs hat they show it as Einstein = (G1T*4)+(G1A)+(G2 Dirt)
It's a clever and cool looking hat.
Here is Einstein when he was unloaded from the shipping van:
and heading into to his new home at Adena Springs:
It was really cool to be there when he entered into his new career. I wish him much success at stud. He certainly showed he could compete on any surface and for a long time! He was always the biggest competitor for one of my favorites, Better Talk Now...
Sigh...
Love the dog sledding pictures. Looks like so much fun.
ReplyDeleteThe picture of Einstein going into the stable is gorgeous. Well done.
ReplyDeleteOh wow!! That horse is AMAZING!! Sigh...I'm in love...
ReplyDeleteSo jealous that you got to see Einstein! Beautiful shots of the dogs too! Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteGreetings from Maryland! We love watching Hola on his adventure and we wonder if he is ever going to get that article in the Mid-Atlantic on the Pensioners on Parade. We also wanted to congratulate you on your engagement and future move to Kentucky :) We also enjoy the dog sledding pictures, the dogs are very interesting... what breed/mix are they?
ReplyDeleteLea and Katie!! Hello!!
ReplyDeleteI'm not certain what is going on with the possible Mid-Atlantic article. I think that because he wasn't bred and didn't race that long (and only in low level races in the Mid Atlantic tracks) that they might not jump on the idea of his story. I'm keeping my fingers crossed and will check with Maggie about it.
BTW - I keep in touch with the Sebrights all the time!
The dogs are all Alaskan Huskies. They have such a wide variety of looks unlike their cousins the Siberian Huskies.
Oh what a handsome boy! Einstein is gorgeous!
ReplyDeleteAlaskan Huskies (first hand knowledge from a former Alaskan here) tend to be a mix of husky for pulling greyhound for speed and whatever else sort of falls into the mix. The pic of the loved family dogs look to me like they've got some border collie mixed in. Really, Alaskan Huskies are Heinz 57 dogs, small and compact, with lots and lots of speed. They seem to average about 35-55 lbs. Also, in Alaska, we tend to call any mixed breed dog of northern decent, Alaskan Husky.
Wow! Now that explains a lot! They all looked different to me! I had a hard time thinking they were all the same "breed". Some looked like labs and others looked like siberian huskies. I even asked some of the event organizers about the dogs and their breeding. Now I know! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteAnd Einstein is GORGEOUS! :)